Human anatomy study guide

Upper extremity

If you think of your body as a house, the bones and muscles are the walls and foundation. That is why the upper extremity is usually one of the first topics on your anatomy syllabus. What’s more, injuries of the shoulder and arm are some of the most commonly seen in everyday patient care - so a solid knowledge of their anatomy will serve you well!

Do you know the name of the vein punctured by the needle when you have your blood drawn? How about the name of the nerve that can lead to tingles if you lean on your elbows for a long time? The answers and more information you can find in the following learning materials.

Lower extremity

Now that you know all about the upper extremity, it makes sense to move a bit further south to learn about the lower extremity. Ever had a broken leg? Fractures and tendon injuries of the leg, knee and foot are commonly seen so there’s no getting out of learning anatomy from the hip, all the way to the toes. ;-)

The lower limb has four main parts: the hip, thigh, leg, and foot. Flexibility is provided by the hip, knee, and ankle joints which allow you to kick, jump, squat, and shake it on the dance floor. Dive into this topic with the following learning materials.

Trunk

Upper and lower limbs: check!

Let’s move to the trunk, commonly known as the torso. The trunk is composed of several regions known as the thorax, abdomen, pelvis, and back. Running through the center of the back is the vertebral column, which contains the spinal cord. The musculature of the back helps you maintain your posture, bend your trunk, move your arms, shrug your shoulders, and much more.

Large abdominal muscles, for example the rectus abdominis, also contribute to the trunk. This is the muscle behind the famous ‘six-pack’ that many fitness enthusiasts strive for. Curious? Read on.

Thorax

You’re now ready to learn about one of the most interesting topics in anatomy - internal organs. Let’s begin with those found in the thorax. Impairments of the heart and the lungs can easily lead to life-threatening conditions. Learning these will help you to be prepared in cases of emergency and also in caring for patients with chronic disorders.

In the world of anatomy, the chest is called the thorax and it is located between the neck and the abdomen. This region can be considered the epicentre of the circulatory system and the primary player in breathing, the latter function being mainly controlled by the diaphragm.

The thorax is as complex on the inside as it is on the outside. Internally it consists of the thoracic cavity that, first and foremost, houses the lungs. Altogether, the lungs occupy a surface area equivalent to the size of a tennis court. Sandwiched between the lungs is the mediastinum, a space that contains blood vessels, nerves, lymphatics, and most importantly, the heart. This vital organ pumps 5 liters of blood every minute of your waking day through the entire body. Read on to find out more!

Abdomen and pelvis

Continuing inferiorly to the thorax, we find the abdomen and pelvis. These two regions are often taught separately for didactic purposes, but their contents blend together into one large abdominopelvic cavity. The largest organ system located here is the gastrointestinal tract. The intestines, which are mainly responsible for absorption, snail through these regions for a total of 7.5 meters, the equivalent of four human beings stacked upright on top of each other.

Four important accessory organs that help the gastrointestinal tract to perform its functions are the liver, gallbladder, pancreas, and spleen. They help especially with the digestion of proteins and fats, as well as metabolic processing.

It's easy to think that the abdomen and pelvis are already overfilled with the structures of the gastrointestinal tract, but there is in fact more! Organs like the kidneys, ureters, urinary bladder, and several reproductive structures are also located here. They form entire systems that work in unison to ensure that you eliminate wastes, react to stressful or scary situations, and reproduce. More details are provided below:

Head and neck

For a lot of students, the head and neck will be the next topic on your anatomy curriculum. Knowing these structures by heart will help you to easily access and describe vital functions. 

A strong and mobile neck supports a five-kilogram head, which in turn contains the brain. Vital nerves and blood vessels pass through the neck while traveling between the head and the rest of the body, so understanding these regions is important. 

Now that we’ve covered some basics, let’s focus on the head. It consists of several bones joined together that form the bony skull, or cranium, parts of which enclose the brain, and some which form the facial skeleton. The head comprises several associated structures, such as eyes, a nose, ears, and a mouth. These are involved in a variety of functions, like vision, smell, hearing, eating and speaking, to name a few.

The neck serves as a passageway between the head and thorax. The nasal and oral cavities are continued by the pharynx, commonly called the throat. This muscular passage facilitates the movement of liquids, food, and air towards your food pipe (esophagus) and windpipe (trachea), respectively. The neck also houses many cartilages, muscles, organs, blood vessels, and nerves like the larynx (voice box), thyroid gland and cervical plexus.

Neuroanatomy

Brain injuries, like strokes or lesions of the spinal cord, can have a huge impact on a patient's life, so let’s learn more about the structures implicated and how they communicate with the rest of the body.

How does the brain communicate with other regions, for instance the hand, to produce a movement or to sense objects? Through nerves, a concept explained by neuroanatomy. The nervous system controls every function of the human body. For example, it is involved in physiological processes like body temperature, voluntary movements, and higher-order thinking such as consciousness and emotional behavior. 

The nervous system is made up of two structural divisions, central and peripheral. The central nervous system (CNS) consists of the brain and the spinal cord, which are protected by layers called meninges and bathed in cerebrospinal fluid. The brain is the master regulator of the body and has four main parts: cerebrum, subcortical structures, brainstem, and cerebellum.

The cerebrum is divided into five lobes and forms the largest part of the human brain, being responsible for cognition. However, every part of the brain is equally important. Do you know the main hero keeping a patient alive during a ‘vegetative state’ or a coma? It’s the sole work of the brainstem, as the cerebrum is dysfunctional during such times.

The spinal cord is the continuation of the brainstem, traveling through the vertebral column. It consists of five regions known as cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccyx. Spinal nerves emerge from the spinal cord through the vertebrae, carrying nerve impulses to and from the periphery. The brain and spinal cord communicate via neural pathways called tracts. Ascending tracts carry peripheral information up towards the brain, while descending tracts transport information back down from the brain.

The peripheral nervous system (PNS) refers to all neural tissue located outside the CNS. It consists of 12 pairs of cranial nerves, the 31 pairs of spinal nerves mentioned previously, and all their branches. The PNS reaches and innervates every single anatomical structure of the human body.

Medical students

Doctors are the ones making diagnoses, interpreting tests and deciding on the appropriate course of treatment. Therefore it is necessary that medical students get the most detailed education when it comes to anatomy. Their courses range from gross and microscopic anatomy, neuroanatomy and histology to cadaveric and cross sectional anatomy. You name it, they have to learn it.

Nursing students

Nurses assist doctors in treating and caring for patients based on therapeutic plans. That’s why nursing students also need a good working knowledge of anatomy. However, their courses don’t go into such detail as for medical students, e.g. cadaveric dissections and radiological anatomy are not part of their curriculum.

Physiotherapy students

As the health professionals specialised to support patients with impairments of joints, muscles or bones, the main anatomy focus for physiotherapy students is the musculoskeletal system. Therefore most schools focus on gross anatomy and miss out topics like histology or radiological anatomy.

Anatomy learning tips

There are some do’s and dont’s that you should always keep in mind when studying. Avoiding the procrastination vortex, navigating learning myths, memorization tricks, passing exams… there are a lot of factors to take into consideration. Find our top tips on how to best get through it all below!

Want to know more? Check out our in-depth guide to the best learning techniques and resources.

3D anatomy tools

There’s a lot of debate regarding the advantages and disadvantages of learning anatomy in 3D. It’s not an ideal way to learn in all situations, but muscle anatomy is one area where we really recommend it. Muscles help us move, and muscle movement occurs in a three-dimensional plane, so it only makes sense to learn them with the aid of 3D tools. 

Click on the link below to check out our huge range of 3D muscle anatomy videos!

Muscle anatomy charts

Need an extra hand to learn muscle anatomy? Along with our 3D muscle function videos, our muscle anatomy charts will help you to learn muscle anatomy with ease. What can you expect from them? Charts divide muscles into body regions and groups, with attachments, innervations and functions clearly labeled. They’re a huge time-saver!

Browse the full range of muscle anatomy charts - and grab your free copy of the Lower Limb Muscle Chart! 

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